All-Star games have become a tedious exercise where most of the attention goes to the players handed surprise assignments, those snubbed or those who snubbed the event. In a season where offense rules, the chances of the winner scoring 200 points in this game is either fabulous or dismaying depending on your perspective. The NHL has a 3-on-3 game now. Maybe the NBA should make a rule that every possession begins with a 3-point shot.

For Lakers fans, it’s their ultimate net dream. By having players named captains and picking players regardless of conference, the Lakers’ LeBron James, who has done a poor job raising the games of his teammates, drafted a team filled with players who are free agents next season – Kevin Durant (but don’t ask him about it), Kyrie Irving, Kawhi Leonard and Klay Thompson. Let’s call it the K Club.

The Lakers could only afford this team by getting rid of every player on the current roster and firing CEO Magic Johnson (great player, horrible everywhere else in the game), Rob Pelinka (clueless parable-spinning GM), and coach Luke Walton, replacing the latter with someone who would work for free. (Mike Brown put your hand down).

Team Giannis has the Bucks’ star, Steph Curry, and Paul George, who the Lakers coveted, and former Laker D’Angelo Russell.

The Saturday game features rookies and second-year players, with the Clippers Shai Gilgeous-Alekander, DeAndre Ayton, Luka Doncic and Ben Simmons on the World team and Laker Kyle Kuzma on the U.S. Steph Currey, Buddy Hield, Damon Lilliard and Dirk Nowitzki will be in the 3-point shooting contest Saturday.

BEST OF THE REST

UEFA Champions League, round of 16.February 12-13

The best club teams in Europe have reached the second leg of the Champions League, one of the many competitions in the sport that keeps its fans overjoyed with constant tournaments that all feed the fanaticism of the World Cup. There are 16 teams alive for this round.

TNT holds the rights to the tourney and will televise 46 games from this point on. It covers Manchester United against Paris St. Germain Tuesday (noon) and Tottenham vs. Dortmund Wednesday (noon). TNT’s subsidiary, Bleacher Report Live, is streaming all games, as is Univision Deportes, but it will cost you depending on your desire to watch one game, a week, etc.

Man U with Paul Pogba is the tourney favorite, with PSG (Neymar), Barcelona (Messi) and Tottenham (Harry Kane) among the contenders.

GENESIS L.A. OPENFeb. 14-17

The annual PGA tour visit to Riviera Country Club will be flush with the top players of the moment, including defending champion Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas, Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson and, ta da, Tigers Woods.

The trumpet cheer is because Woods has a checkered history with the event. He made his official debut as an amateur in 1992 and again in 1993 – missed the cut both times – and played the event regularly thereafter but with frustrating levels of success.

He finished second in 1998 and 1999 (the ’98 event was not held at Riviera) but was limited to top 20 finishes in other years, leading to 2006 when he withdrew after two rounds because of a bout with the flu. It apparently was a long illness, because he didn’t come back until 2018, when he missed the cut.

Stories about his absence have sprayed like slices and hooks. He stopped playing because he never played the course and its funky kikuyu grass well. He chose to cut back his early tour schedule. He was injured, often as we know. And then there’s the rumor that he and a Riviera top exec got into a spat in 2006.

Those issues are over. Tiger’s company, which is education-based, is the official host of the event now, and he has said often that he’d be disappointed if he never won the PGA event considering he’s a SoCal native and began his career at the event.

The Golf Channel has first and second round coverage Thursday and Friday (11 a.m.). The third round will be covered by TGC (10 a.m.-noon) and CBS (noon-3 p.m.

DAYTONA 500February 14-17

The official start of the NASCAR season is at its best known event, and Fox and FS1 will be all over the stock car opener. It will air two made-for-TV duels on Thursday (4 and 6 p.m., FS1), has the Truck series Friday (4:30 p.m., FS1), the Xfinity series Saturday (11:30 a.m., FS1), and the big race itself on Sunday (11:30 a.m., Fox).

Alliance of American FootballFebruary 16-17

This one snuck up on everyone in the wake of the Super Bowl. The eight-team AAF plays a ten-week schedule featuring teams filled with young players who starred in college or have had minimal NFL experience. It’s not considered a contender with the NFL.

It has more of a G League feel, as in a potential NFL minor league for player development. You won’t find any 32-year-old quarterbacks looking for work. You will find a lot of recognizable names among the coaches, though – former UCLA player and coach Rick Neuheisel (Arizona), Steve Spurrier (Orlando), former Rams coach Mike Martz (San Diego) and Mike Riley (San Antonio), the former Oregon State and Chargers coach who passed on the USC job once, opening the door for Pete Carroll.

The eight teams – Salt Lake, Atlanta, Birmingham and Memphis are the others – were rostered geographically, so Neuheisel’s Arizona team has a lot of Pac-12 veterans and Birmingham is a merger of Alabama and Auburn. It’s also where a city like San Antonio and Birmingham can make a case for getting an NFL franchise. How San Diego responds to a minor league team after the Chargers departure may be a weak link.

All games will be televised. Saturday, Salt Lake is at Birmingham (11 a.m., TNT) and Arizona visits Memphis (5 p.m., NFL Network). Sunday, Orlando is at San Antonio (1 p.m.,, CBS Sports Network) and Atlanta is at San Diego (5 p.m., NFL Network.

COLLEGE BASKETBALLFebruary 11-12, 14, 16

On the plus side, streaming has made virtually every regular season game available, and ESPN Plus seems dedicated to locking up every game before any other network gets a toehold.

On the minus, the regular season in February is a grind until league tournaments begin, which is where bids to the tournament will be won or lost. Tennessee is ranked No. 1, but no one will remember this if the Vols are eliminated in the first weekend of games.